Remember Opening Night in September? The Knights pounded the Spirit 8-0 and Max Domi had a hat trick in his first OHL game. It was one of the more electric non-playoff evenings at the JLC in recent years. It was also a sign of things to come. London is among junior hockey's biggest group of overachievers, while Saginaw has yet to live up to lofty expectations.

WHO TO WATCH

London -- F Dane Fox. He lit up Erie on Saturday night, then made a nice play on a pivotal goal by Seth Griffith Sunday in Brampton. If the 18-year-old performs on a consistent basis, it will help NHL GMs overlook the early-season uncertainty over whether or not he'd ever play; Saginaw -- The Saginaw News reports star F Brandon Saad could return after missing a month with an upper-body injury. Spirit GM Todd Watson said it's still up in the air. Saad makes a difference. The Spirit have five wins in eight games with the Chicago prospect in the lineup and only five in 19 without him.

COACH HUNTER, PART DEUX

Now that Dale Hunter is in Washington, will the winning in London continue? Brother Mark makes his debut as bench boss. The Knights gathered at the downtown Jack Astor's Tuesday to watch the Caps fall to St. Louis 2-1. "Ovechkin did something during the game and one of the Ruperts said, 'He's going to hear about that from Dale,' " Max Domi said. Bruins prospect Jared Knight said the move of their old coach jazzes up the NHL schedule. "Washington is an exciting team and now with Dale in charge, it gives us more of a reason to follow them."

MARTIN ILL AGAIN

Bad luck is following around D Colin Martin. The over-ager missed practice Thursday with the flu and is in danger of sitting out a second straight Friday home outing. He had a cold last week but gutted it out in practice in hopes of playing against Barrie before being scratched. He played the final two games of the weekend.

SPIRIT RISING?

Former first overall pick John McFarland is heading for a career season offensively in his fourth year with 16 goals to lead Saginaw. His former Toronto midget linemate Tyler Toffoli, the Ottawa 67's sniper, has 26 goals. McFarland's previous best is 25 last year, split between Sudbury and Saginaw.

HARRINGTON A CAMPER

Forget next year. Knights D Scott Harrington has a chance to make the Canadian junior team now at age 18. In past internationals, he has proven chemistry with Niagara's Dougie Hamilton, who should make the squad. But Harrington, a Pittsburgh second-rounder, will be in tough to crack the lineup. There are seven NHL first-round D-men heading to Calgary Dec. 10-14, including Saginaw's giant blue-liner Jamie Oleksiak. The U.S. will announce its pretournament roster Monday, where Knights captain Jarred Tinordi and Jared Knight have real shots to make it.

FRIGHT NIGHT

The Knights have been tough to beat on the road. It's been a different story the past three Fridays at home. They're not trying to be too flashy on the big stage, according to workhorse G Michael Houser. "We try to play the same game wherever we are. We've had good success on the road and now we've got to find a way to translate that back home on Fridays. I don't know why we've lost the last three weeks." They still are able to avoid losing streaks. "We're a hard-working team," Jared Knight said, "and we don't like to lose. When we do, it's a real quiet room."

PREDATORY COMPANY

The Knights signed the Lambton Shores Predators as an affiliate for the rest of the season. They're making some noise in the GOJHL.